Trapped by the vines and darkness of the forest carried a sinking feeling in my gut. This couldn't be happening right now. How could I get us caught in such a trap? Paranoia crept in my mind by the enclosed sounds within. Echoes and whispers traveled with the wind but I couldn't understand them. The voices grew loud and faint at the same time. There was nothing I could do to get free of the maze but I persevered on. Perhaps the dreadful feeling of something happening to Dante on my watch weighed heavy on my conscious.
Sometimes it felt like I was trapped by a devil's game. Has more of my past deeds come to haunt me?
The voices sounded familiar but different at the same time.
My sword hacked away at the vegetation but it never relented.
Moving through the open areas just drove me round into circles.
The sounds faded abruptly and the aura that covered the forest disappeared. Suddenly my body felt lighter like I was out of a dream. Viewing my surroundings I was able to notice that everything had changed. The trail was light now, the forest became more sparse and the noises of animals flooded the scenery. My senses returned to me and I went to search for Dante. I feared for his safety only to find him an arm's throw away. Dante kept a valiant posture but his eyes were buried at the dirt.
"Dante! Are you alright?"
Dante noticed my approach.
"Hmm…? Yeah, I'm alright," Dante replied still gazing at the ground.
"What happened?" I scanned the surroundings and sheathed my sword.
"Someone wanted to speak to me."
A sense of relief washed over me.
"Was it someone you know?"
"No, I couldn't see them," Dante said. "Their voice came into my head."
"What did it sound like?"
"Like an echo, don't think they want me to know who they are." Dante pulled up a patch of grass and rubbed it between his fingers.
I heaved a sigh and looked around once more but I couldn't feel any other presence.
"We should leave the forest and go back to Balenos."
Dante nodded and we quickly tried to leave the forest. As we left, I felt a pair of eyes staring at me but I couldn't tell where it was coming from. My mind was on high alert and I made sure we didn't walk into any more traps. When the familiar sight of Balenos reached us the tension in my body and mind eased. Dante never said another word back and seemed to be in his own mind. I just intended to make sure nothing happened to him.
"We're back safely Young Lord."
Tapping his shoulder to get him out of his haze .
"Right," Dante replied stroking his chin. "What should we do now?"
"We aren't going to do anything, this is where we part," I said with a pat on his back. "I think I've taught you enough and I've stayed here far too long."
"Are you sure you don't want to stay longer Demitri?"
I shook my head, instinct told me that my troubles might drag this boy down with me too.
"Like you said Dante, I'm not the type of man to stay in one place."
"As long as I'm here, you're always welcomed in Balenos, Demitri."
Dante gave me a smile.
"Thank you, Young Lord."
"Oh, one more thing Demitri."
Dante leaned forward with a serious expression on his face.
"If there's anyone who speaks in a mysterious language like I can, be on your guard."
"Like English?"
"That or any other language that you don't know of," Dante waved his hand in the air." They might have similar gifts like mine, you should be careful."
I bade Dante farewell and left the town of Balenos on the open trail. I was an outlaw, a wanted traitor and I didn't want Dante or his family to get caught up in my actions. They were nobles and had the lives of many under their care. I'm no leader, I'm just a killer and a forsaken one at that. Someone who betrayed his friends and his kingdom. Leaving Bareth as soon as possible was the best thing I could do for them. My destination was northward bound, straight into Demon territory.
Twisting the ring on my finger as I walked a lonely road north. With the Hero gone, the demons had returned. My actions had caused much suffering and I was responsible for them all. This was the only act of kindness I could give back. I had to make things right and stop them. Maybe it was the guilt I felt in my heart or maybe Princess Helen had planned for this.
Dire straits with dire needs. Blood was on my hands.
Sometimes I wonder why I didn't kill Princess Helen as well for the crimes she committed. Though If I did, the Kingdom of Bareth would be worse off. No matter how horrific her crimes were, she was in the position of power. Only the one who is willing to take the role of leadership should kill her. I wasn't in the game of politics and I had no notion to rule. Who would take her place when was she gone? I stuck with the devil I knew.
The Hero I murdered had no such place in the upper echelons. He was a sword like me and he was thickly covered with filth. With his death, the war stopped as quickly as it was started. Now I was branded the common enemy of humanity for letting the Demons return unabated. I had killed one Demon Lord before and I had decided that I was going to kill the new Demon Lord now.
Rummaging through my pocket, I pulled out the map and checked it once over. Sunlight still shone in the sky but it would soon be gone. The next town after Balenos would take almost a day's journey. I remembered the name of the town as it was famous in the Kingdom. The town was called, "Swillsden" also known as the "City of Pigs." That small farm town was no real city but it had a remarkable amount of pigs and boars that lived there.
The road from Balenos to Swillsden was covered in a lush landscape of trees. Civilization had not strayed too far from their respective areas. The border of where the two kingdoms of Solace and Bareth met were mostly uninhabited. Balenos and Swillsden were on the eastern outskirts of the Kingdom of Bareth. I was already surprised that the horror of the previous war didn't reach Balenos.
Hoping in good faith that Swillsden had acquired the same honest fate. The Demon territory in the north was rife with treacherous landscapes and harsh weather compared to mankind's land here. I needed to get some supplies before I could cross the region. Mountains separated the Kingdom of Bareth and Demon territory. Jagged rocks in those mountains sprang forth and hid many dangerous and dark things below.
Trying to decide my next course of action gave me some worry as I heaved a short sigh. My eyes glanced toward the ground and I noticed a couple shadows following me. They stayed not too far from me but wouldn't let me out of their range. They were following me for sure and I had to leave the road to see if they would still chase. Quickly straying off the beaten path, I entered the surrounding forest. Slowing my breath and keep my posture low to hide my presence behind a broken log.
The shadows displaced quickly into the area where I used to be. There seemed to be a group of them in dark black garb and they were as quiet as the air itself. My vision came upon one of them and I knew who were after me. Black Birds, covert assassins employed by the Kingdom of Solace. The Black Birds signaled each other and didn't utter a word. They should've all been gone already but I guessed wrong.
So finally the hands of Solace decided to make a move for my life.
They realized I had vanished from the road and drew their swords. They scattered quickly in all directions to find me. My hiding place wasn't an ideal spot. I just wanted to drawn them out of shadows. Now that they know I hidden from them they were going to take any chances. This was now a battle to the death with assassins and I was not going to lose my life here. I pressed myself low against the log in preparation for an ambush. A Black Bird came near me without a sound and our eyes met. I sprung out to cut his throat before he could signal the others.
Another Black Bird appeared quickly perhaps noticing that one of his comrades was missing and came to investigate. What he saw next was my sword plunged into his chest as I covered his mouth. The Mithril sword I had was splendid in being able to reap the lives of men in an instant. The forest echoed the call of birds as some shadows passed by me without a glance. Luck didn't describe what happened.
These Black Birds were definitely inexperienced.
The Black Birds that I fought long ago wouldn't have passed by without noticing. There was one previous Black Bird I knew that would've made me paid dearly and that was Silvia, one of the eight companions to the Hero. She was very similar to me but more meticulous and cunning. She forsook her vows as a Black Bird to join the Hero and we welcomed her. Silva's specialty was spy-craft: hiding in plain sight, manipulation, assassination, and information gathering. If she was tracking me, I would've been dead already.
I began to follow them now instead while under the shadows of the forest.
"Where did he go?"
"How could we lose him?"
"Where are Knight and Rook?"
"Damn! He must have killed them!"
"Him? No way."
"You know that the Cardinal said he was dangerous."
"The Cardinal won't be pleased."
"The master won't! We must kill him!"
The Cardinal? So there's a new leader of the Black Birds? The old master was killed by Silvia herself. Silvia had told me once before that the master of the Black Birds would be given the name of a bird. That master was also called the Crow, not the Cardinal. I wonder who I antagonized enough in the Kingdom of Solace for these Black Birds to be after me. There were only four Black Birds left and I had to take them out as precisely as I could.
Even with my experience, I don't think I can handle four assassins at once. Nearing another Black Bird, I came behind him and mimicked his footsteps. I waited for the other Black Birds to look away. In that swift moment, my hands move to stab my blade towards the back of his heart. As soon as his body was pierced it evaporated into the air.
"Shit! Shadow magic!"
Dumb mistake, they covered up their numbers with an illusion.
"There! He's over there!"
There were only three assassins, one of the four was actually a shadow created by magic. I dashed quickly towards one of the Black Birds to kill him. He evaded my blow and thrust his sword at me. I blocked with my arm so I could take his life. His blade pierced my arm but my sword went into his heart. Blood streamed out of my arm and I could feel it weaken.
My prospects seemed dimmer as the pain in my arm increased. I didn't have the advantage of stealth anymore. I could only use one arm against two assassins. One of the Black Birds could use shadow magic. I didn't even know if the one I killed was the user. The Black Birds stared at me, waiting, but I was not going to make the first move. More shadows started to appear and the Black Birds numbers began to swell.
If they weren't going to fight, I was going to run. I slowly backed away and ran through the forest. They chased after me and my blood gave them an easy trail. I couldn't stop to dress my wounds as they kept close. My eyes ran towards the far road and saw men on horseback. I decided I was going risk it and made my way there. The beaten road was the path most traveled by people and not the forest we were currently fighting in. Whether those men were friendly or not, I hoped that the confusion would let me get away from the Black Birds or in an extreme case steal a horse.
As I got closer, the nature and stature of the men became more evident. They were a group of giant burly men. They carried huge weapons with the muscles to show for it. The stoic faces and scars that each of them had told of their battle prowess. They were mercenaries and I had crossed the path in front of people. They stopped in their tracks and stared on me with indifference. My hopes for escape came to a halt and the Black Birds were able to discern it.
"You mercenaries! If you kill him we will pay you!" A Black Bird yelled.
My body tensed up as I had led myself to my own demise. The head of the mercenary group got off his steed and produced his weapon. The Black Birds came close to the road and began to try encircle me. A loud roar echoed in the forest as the men held his weapon high.
A giant cleaver swung up in the air and began to rend a Black Bird in two.
The shadows disappeared as the user of the shadow magic died a frightening death.
The last Bird tried to run away but was smashed into a tree with a shield by another giant man.
The head of the mercenary group was a mountain of a man and he turned around to face me.
"Demitri! I never thought I would see you again!"
The mountain spoke and I became conscious of the fact that it was Martin, one of my former companions.
--
I do not know what to prefer.
Knowing the death of embrace.
Or a beautiful sleep.
What I do know is that a Black Bird's whistle will ensure neither.
~ Poem of a Black Bird - Crow